How to store dinghy and outboard for offshore

[TwoIsBetter]

Hi I have a new to me FP40 I was wondering for going off shore where you won't need the right for some time what's the best way to store the dinghy and outboard that people have done before. Seems like leaving it on the davits is asking for trouble if it swings around in heavy conditions. So was planning to put the outboard lashed down up front.

What about the outboard? It's a 9.9HP Yamaha four stroke. Per manual it can be stored horizontally with proper prep. Where is a safe place to store it that others have done before? Try to drop it into the front locker, not sure if it will clear? Any advice much appreciated!

[jordanbigel]

No idea about Catamaran-specific storage tricks, but most people I know store the outboard on a mounting attached the the stern rails.

Like this one which came up in a google search for "outboard rail mount" and looks like the Cadillac of outboard mounts, a bit pricy, but there are alternatives available for much less:

https://www.westmarine.com/edson-mar...ng-303760.html

[TwoIsBetter]

Great thanks that looks promising, for some reason all the ones I've seen before were closer to 75lb max, this is still a bit underspeced for the weight of my outboard but it might do.

[chris mac]

We keep our dingy in the davits, we just added lateral lines to stop it from swinging.
As for the outboard, ours was a problem because of waves coming through the bridge deck and hitting the leg/prop. So we removed the outboard and put it on a stern mount.
Last year I redesigned our davits so it lifts higher. Now the bottom of the outboard is above the opening and protected by the stern which allows us to leave the outboard on the dingy all the time.

[TwoIsBetter]

Originally Posted by chris mac

We keep our dingy in the davits, we just added lateral lines to stop it from swinging.
As for the outboard, ours was a problem because of waves coming through the bridge deck and hitting the leg/prop. So we removed the outboard and put it on a stern mount.
Last year I redesigned our davits so it lifts higher. Now the bottom of the outboard is above the opening and protected by the stern which allows us to leave the outboard on the dingy all the time.

Thanks for the info. How heavy is your outboard? Mine is around 100lbs, a bit more. What stern mount do you use?

[chris mac]

Originally Posted by TwoIsBetter

Thanks for the info. How heavy is your outboard? Mine is around 100lbs, a bit more. What stern mount do you use?

Our outboard is a yamaha 15hp, 2 stroke. Specs say 86lb. I have no idea of the brand of mount, it came with the boat.
https://www.amazon.ca/Panther-55-002...93820619&psc=1
This is pretty similar and more than capable, weight wise

[DefinitelyMe]

Dinghy: depends on expected conditions. If benign, on davits. If gales expected, lashed upside-down on foredeck.

Engine: on a bracket on the stern. No need to buy an expensive bracket; a decently-beefy piece of plywood does the trick nicely.

[Factor]

Seawind offer a seperate lifting tackle for the outboard and a bracket to mount it on, I am sure that it could be retrofitted to many other brands

[fxykty]

Many cats store their dinghies with outboards in place on their davits. If you’re planning a trade wind passage and in season then no worries. As others have suggested extra straps to stop swinging are needed, plus backup lift straps in case the usual straps break.

If you think you may have nasty weather then a tight fitting cover that will prevent it filling with water is a good idea. You may have solar panels above the davits but that is not enough to keep horizontal rain or big wave breaks out of the dinghy. Bung out as well.

Taking off the outboard is a good way to reduce the swinging weight of the dinghy. It can be stored on a bracket or inside a locker if you have one available. Vertical is healthier for the engine without draining everything.

If you are out of season or planning a more difficult passage then removing the dinghy from the davits is a good idea. You may have room on your cabin top behind the mast. Otherwise, you will have room on your trampoline. It’s a good idea to deflate the tubes and that makes it a smaller target for wind and waves.

On our boat we routinely remove the outboard for coastal and ocean passages and store it vertically in one of our engine rooms. We have a fully deflatable dinghy and store it in the cockpit so our davits are empty.

[NYSail]

Originally Posted by jordanbigel

No idea about Catamaran-specific storage tricks, but most people I know store the outboard on a mounting attached the the stern rails.

Like this one which came up in a google search for "outboard rail mount" and looks like the Cadillac of outboard mounts, a bit pricy, but there are alternatives available for much less:

https://www.westmarine.com/edson-mar...ng-303760.html

I have one of these for sale if interested. Very robust! Let me know if interested…….

[chrisr]

most cats we know leave the dink on the davits, including outboard. for passages, lift to max height and take some extra lashings to prevent movement. properly designed davits have no problems for this

we are a little unusual in that we have a platform at the aft end of the cockpit that the dink sits on like this :



but this is a bit of a luxury and on both previous cats we always just stayed on the davits.

cheers

[SV Confianza]

We have had our dinghy with the outboard on the davits in fairly rough seas, but we'll attach some extra lines from the bow and stern to the outside aft cleats to keep from bouncing back and forth. I have seen others use straps as well, depending on the setup.

It still makes me nervous to do so, so we usually pull the engine off and attach to the stern mount as other has mentioned if we're expecting weather. Confianza has a separate davit for lifting the motor to the motor bracket. I'm believe the motor bracket is custom, with just a stainless steel bracket holding a thick piece of teak, and some nice stainless bolts through the hull to a stainless backing plate.

The motor davit is stored in the aft bench and slaves over about a two inch diameter and 3 inch tall stainless cylinder that's welded to a plate and attached through the topside to a backing plate.

[Funkydrum]

We're on an FP 42 and as others have noted, lift to max in davits and a separate line to lash to the boat to eliminate swinging. Leave the bung out too. FP's davits lift plenty high enough that the dinghy is well out of the way in even tough sea conditions.

[Tom and Maje]

We kept ours on the davits and secured her really well to keep her from moving too much.

Maje

[singlespeed]

Never had any issues with storing the dinghy with motor on the davits. Can't ever remember any waves actually hitting the dinghy. It is certainly better than having the dinghy lashed on top of a trampoline when going to weather in adverse conditions, with wave tops pushing through the trampoline. I tie the dinghy to prevent lateral movement for any passage, and if a storm is forecast to pass over my anchorage. Because it's better to be prepared to move in a hurry if you or that boat in front of you drag and you need to relocate in those conditions. The dinghy drain plug is also removed for the same conditions and attached to a pad eye on the inner transom, above the level of the drain, to keep it from potentially obstructing the drain. The little water that comes in when I drop the dinghy back into the wate,before I can get the drain plug back in, is easily bailed out.